Nudity, drinking, smoking: Winston Churchill’s unusual diplomacy
His time at the White House serves as a case study in getting what you want
Some questions of diplomatic protocol are tricky. Others are not. For instance, should one meet a head of state clothed or nude? Winston Churchill, Britain’s former prime minister and the puckish hero of a new history, often chose to grin—and bare it.
This article appeared in the Culture section of the print edition under the headline “Guest who?”
Culture August 31st 2024
- Why the world is teeming with so many new sports leagues
- John Sainsbury, a donor to the National Gallery, had the last laugh
- How “reading trees” can unlock many mysteries
- Nudity, drinking, smoking: Winston Churchill’s unusual diplomacy
- “Black Myth: Wukong” is China’s first blockbuster video game
- Twenty-five years on, “Fight Club” punches harder than ever
From the August 31st 2024 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionDiscover more
Angela Merkel sets out to restore her reputation
But her new memoir is unlikely to change her critics’ minds
The best books of 2024, as chosen by The Economist
Readers will never think the same way again about games, horses and spies
What to read to understand Elon Musk
The world’s richest man was shaped by science fiction
Tech and religion are very much alike
They both have gods, rich institutions and secretive cultures
Woodrow Wilson’s reputation continues to decline
A dispassionate new biography chronicles the former president’s hostility to suffrage
The cult of Jordan Peterson
What the Canadian intellectual gets right about young men